10. Honorary consuls

Under Article 4 of the 1963 Vienna Convention on Consular Relations 'a consular post may be established in the territory of the receiving State only with that State's consent. The seat of the consular post, its classification and the consular district shall be established by the sending State and shall be subject to the approval of the receiving State.' Article 1(2) of the Convention differentiates between career consular officers and honorary consular officers. Chapter III (Articles 58-68) of the Convention contains provisions that relate specifically to the latter.

Criteria for an honorary consul

Criteria applied when considering a request for an honorary consul (in Sweden)

• Consular posts are established on a reciprocal basis.
• There should be an identified need for the provision of consular services.
• Meaningful consular functions should be exercised by honorary consular offices on a regular basis.
• A consular post should preferably be established in a city, not in a rural area.
• If a country does not have a diplomatic mission in Sweden, it is recommended that a consular post be established in the capital or in one of the major cities in Sweden.
• Consuls-general may act as head of consular posts in the main cities.
• No country may have more than two honorary consular officers belonging to the same consular post, including the head.
• In principle, the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs will not agree to the establishment of a new consulate in or near Stockholm, if a diplomatic mission already exists in the capital.
• The consular district may comprise the whole of Sweden, one or several counties or a city.

Criteria for a nominee for head of consulate

The nominee should:

• be a reputable, well-established and self-supporting person with an unblemished record and a well-developed network of contacts in Sweden and in the country they will represent;
• be professionally active;
• not already be an honorary consular officer of another sending State;
• not hold an office of profit or trust under the Government, county or municipality, or be an elected member of a Swedish political assembly, in order to avoid a conflict of interests;
• preferably have Swedish citizenship or hold a Swedish residence permit;
• reside and be registered in the area where recognition is granted;
  provide an office in the consular district, with standard equipment such as telephone, fax, internet and email, regular office hours.

Given the current ratio of women heads of consular missions in Sweden, female nominees are encouraged.

If the head of a consular post is unable to carry out their functions, or the position of head of consular post is vacant, an acting head of post may serve provisionally as head of the consular post. Generally, the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs must be notified in advance in such cases.

Refusal and withdrawal of an exequatur

The Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs may refuse to grant an exequatur and is not required to give a reason for such a refusal. Moreover, in cases of misuse after an exequatur has been issued, the exequatur may be revoked, and with it the right to use the title 'honorary consul'.

Procedure for issuing an exequatur

• A note verbale should be sent to the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs (Protocol Department), giving notice of the intention to establish an honorary consular post and/or to appoint an honorary consul, at the time of the request for the Ministry's advance approval. The note must include the full name of the nominee, consular class, the consular district(s) concerned, the seat of the consular post and the nominee's curriculum vitae.
• The Chief of Protocol will then send a letter to the relevant County Governor.
• Inquires will be made about the candidate and the resulting information will be forwarded to the Chief of Protocol.
• If the person is considered suitable, a note verbale will be sent to the mission indicating that the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs has no objection to the appointment.
• Following the appointment of the honorary consul, a second note verbale should be sent as soon as possible to the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs (Protocol Department),  requesting an exequatur. Please observe that the Protocol Department requires neither a copy nor the original of the consular commission.
• The Protocol Department will then grant the exequatur in a note verbale. The mission will be informed of the date of the exequatur and requested to fill in a form with the honorary consul's full name, address, telephone number, etc.

In accordance with international practice, a request for an exequatur should be handled strictly between the government or mission of the sending State and the government of the receiving State. Therefore, the consular candidate should not contact the Ministry with regard to this matter.

The head of a consular post may not assume their duties until an exequatur has been granted.

Identity cards

The honorary consul has the right to receive an identity card once the exequatur has been granted. A request to this effect should be submitted through a verbal note to the Protocol Department by the mission together with a copy of the honorary consul's passport (or driving licence/national identity card) and one photo (standard passport photo). Identity cards are valid for a maximum of five years and can be renewed for five years at a time, at the mission's request.

Privileges and immunities

Privileges and immunities for honorary consular officers who are Swedish citizens or residing in Sweden (all honorary consular officers in Sweden)

• Privileges and immunities for honorary consular officers who are Swedish citizens or residing in Sweden are very limited.
• Honorary consular officers enjoy immunity from jurisdiction with respect to official acts performed in the exercise of their functions.
• Honorary consular officers are under no obligation to give evidence concerning matters connected with the exercise of their functions or to produce official correspondence and documents relating thereto. They are also entitled to decline to give evidence as expert witnesses with regard to the law of the sending State.
• There are no privileges regarding duty-free import and customs reliefs.
• Honorary consular officers are exempt from all dues and taxes on the remuneration and emoluments they receive from the sending State with respect to the exercise of consular functions. No other tax privileges apply.
• Members of the family of an honorary consular officer or a consular employee employed at a consular post headed by an honorary consular officer do not enjoy privileges or immunities.

Blue diplomatic plates are not issued to vehicles of honorary consular officers.